The Yankees threw a bullpen game on Thursday, which begs the question: Do they need to acquire a starting pitcher by the Aug. 3 trade deadline — and preferably much sooner than that?

Because by some point around the deadline, Max Fried and Carlos Rodón might be closing in on returns to the big league rotation. And late in August, Clarke Schmidt could begin to join the conversation as well, whether the bigger need is in the rotation or bullpen.

But that is still weeks away. And while the Yankees have the benefit of the All-Star break coming up, once they return, they will still need a fifth starter to cover them for a few weeks before they get healthy – and that is assuming the rest of the current rotation remains healthy, which is no guarantee.

“Yeah, I don’t want to take any more hits,” general manager Brian Cashman said Thursday at Tropicana Field when asked about the club’s starting depth. “Obviously, we’ve lost some important people that, thankfully, we’ll be getting them back.